FOCUS Sustainable skills
FOCUS Sustainable skills development College of Cape Town is the preferred provider for education and training. The College of Cape Town for TVET is strategically aligned through the Linkages and Partnerships Department of the College to establish and maintain strategic partnerships as well as to secure new projects, funding, equipment and other training and development resources. The College continuously expands and maintains a broad link with industry, various SETAs, provincial and national government sectors, other TVET Colleges and stakeholders within the training environment. The College boasts an impressive partnership list on which the names of both local and international partners appear. We welcome new partnerships with the private and public sectors, especially for occupational skills development. The College has longstanding partnerships and relationships with the private sector, various government departments and institutions, industry, SETAs and other postschool institutions, particularly for Workplace- Based Learning or Exposure. Most of these partnerships have been formalised through Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) lodged with our Linkages and Partnerships Department which serves as a support area for the Centres of Specialisation, Occupational Development and delivery. We have recently launched a Power Partnerships campaign (Power Partners) to acknowledge and grow our existing partnership base. The programme works by leveraging the power of workplace base learning through the Power Partnerships Programme to improve people’s skills and livelihoods, in particular, our youth in the following areas: • Student placements (in-service training, internships and workplace-based learning) • Apprenticeships • Skills training • Course design • Workplace mentorship The power of partnerships The Power Partners campaign was officially launched in April 2021 at the Gardens Campus, in an auspicious event for the Centre of Specialisation (CoS) Power Partners. The event was for the College of Cape Town for TVET and affiliated project partners of the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET); Energy and Water Sector Education Training Authority (EWSETA); Institute of Plumbing South Africa (IOPSA); Manufacturing, Engineering and Related Services SETA (merSETA) and Retail Motor Industry (RMI) to acknowledge the role demonstrated by these partners. The College expressed appreciation for the unwavering support and commitment demonstrated by these partners in recognition of the partnership agreement to collectively address the skills development needs in the Western Cape. All partners successfully accomplished the rollout and implementation of the the CoS Apprenticeship Programme for Automotive Motor Mechanic and Plumbing. When CoS was developed, the Department of Higher Education and Training had two objectives: address demand for priority trades and contribute towards capacity building of the public TVET WESTERN CAPE BUSINESS 2022 42
College system in delivering occupational trade qualifications with employers as partners. Out of the 13 Centre of Specialisation trades identified and developed, the College started with Automotive Motor Mechanic and Plumbing. The College expressed gratitude to all the partners and host employers and acknowledged sponsors (Autobooks, HaynesPro, Ford Motor Company ZA and Geberit ZA) for their meaningful contributions. Thirty Automotive Motor Mechanic apprentices were recruited and 10 host employers contracted, namely: Car Smart Service Centre, Taylor’s Auto Services, Automax Service & Fitment Centre, German Autoworks, Riaan’s Auto Repairs, Super Group, Unitrans, Canterbury Motors, Barloworld Barons Tokai and McCarthy. In addition, there are 20 plumbing apprentices and one contracted host employer, Peninsula Plumbing and Engineering Works. The College of Cape Town for TVET is not just the “Coolest College in South Africa”, but a Skills Battleground, with a strong army, made up of the best soldiers (affiliated partners) to collectively address the skills development needs of the Western Cape and South Africa. Our motto for the year is “EXCELLENCE STARTS WITH ME”. We strive for excellence and quality in everything we do and this is commensurate with our mission of being “committed to being an institution of excellence that develops the potential of clients through quality Education and Training in response to the skills development needs of the country”. ■ Specialised skills are practised in excellent facilities at the Collge of Cape Town. 43 WESTERN CAPE BUSINESS 2022
